‘November is the new Christmas shopping month in the UK’

Traditionally, consumers spend the most money online in December. But new predictions show that November might be overtaking December as the year’s peak trading month. If the estimates are right, November will see a record 20 billion pounds (22.7 billion euros) spent online.

The predictions come from ecommerce consultancy Salmon, which explains that this year’s Black Friday Week (20-27 November) is the main instigator behind this shift in consumer buying patterns. Over the seven days retailers use to attract consumers with special discounts, almost 8 billion euros will be spent online in the United Kingdom.

Black Friday is incredibly popular in the UK

Black Friday – and the days around this date, like Cyber Monday – has become incredibly popular in the UK and other parts of Europe since the last couple of years. More and more consumers are waiting for this period to bag a bargain instead of shopping during the traditional Christmas shopping period in December.

Last year, Salmon’s data showed that conversion rates doubled the normal weekly rate to 106 percent, which is an increase of 10 percent compared to the previous year. And with sales predicted to overtake 2016, Salmon thinks retailers should now begin with planning their online operations during the peak period.

‘Consumers aren’t looking for inspiration’

“Black Friday and seasonal offers are now very much expected by shoppers in advance of the traditional December Christmas shopping period. Therefore, retailers need to be thinking of how they can cater to consumers during heightened condition”, Salmon’s peak trading expert James Webster, explains. “Consumers want to shop with retailers on their terms and across devices and channels, taking the path of least resistance without high volumes of traffic affecting that experience.”

He explains how, when it comes to Black Friday, consumers aren’t looking for inspiration, they just want a slick transaction-based shopping experience. With consumers being used to services such as Amazon Prime, which offers same or next day delivery, they are now accustomed to speedy and high quality services. And if they experience something very slow or convoluted during a week where it’s all about bargains and buying things before it’s too late, they’ll quickly go to the competitor.